


TeaTime

by theescapist99



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Just read it lol, M/M, Mary Lou Barebone is a bitch, even past the movie, idk man, maybe think of like a reverse sweet tooth but with mary lou instead of grindelwald, percival and credence have an established relationship, percivals in it at the end, some vague child death mentions, theyre literally already together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-24
Updated: 2017-04-24
Packaged: 2018-10-23 16:08:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10722672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theescapist99/pseuds/theescapist99
Summary: Credence receives a mysterious package while he's home alone --  the contents of which trigger some disturbing, locked away memories of Ma'.Thankfully, Credence has his new life with Percival Graves to help remind him that life can be sweet after all.





	TeaTime

There was a knock on the door.  

Credence twisted himself from the armchair in which he sat, pulling back one side of black and dusty window curtain so he might see who it was that had come knocking at Percival's door.  

He was surprised to find the postman standing on the doorstep – the no maj postman, to be more specific. It was not all that common that they got no maj mail, but it still happened enough to where Credence could recognize the feeble and elderly man that appeared to be assigned to their street when there was something to be delivered.  

Credence got up from his seat, discarding the magazine he had been reading onto the small coffee table closest to him.  

He made quick work of undoing Percival's several locks – something Credence would say was really quite an achievement – and he opened the front door a moderate amount.  

"Ah, yes," the old man smiled at him sweetly, "How do you do Mr. Graves?"  

Well... they had had to come up with  _some_ reasonable explanation as to why Credence had so suddenly taken up residence there less than a year ago.  

...Illegitimate son just happened to the simplest and most believable thing to go with.  

"Fine, thank you, Mr. Fowler," Credence responded courteously, "Have something for us today?"  

"Yes, for you specifically in fact," Mr. Fowler mumbled, stooping down to pick up a rather large package by his feet that Credence had not noticed beforehand.  

Credence tried not to look too surprised at this revelation, accepting the package with silent bewilderment.  

Who on earth would be sending anything to him through No Maj mail?  

"Well good day to you, young Mr. Graves," the postman bid him after their exchange had been completed, "Say hello to your father for me."  

"Will do, Mr. Fowler," Credence nodded, calling after him, "I hope you have a lovely day as well!"  

Credence clicked the door shut, making sure every lock was secured back in place before bothering to look at the package.  

When he was done, Credence knelt down and inspected the rather plain and neatly wrapped brown box he had received.  

Percival had always instructed him not to open owl post alone – not while the Auror wasn't present or at least home. Yet the older man had never given the same instruction for No Maj mail... but it had never before occurred that No Maj mail had been addressed to Credence before. 

Frankly, Credence wasn't sure what he was supposed to do in this situation.  

He had to squint to read the faintly stamped return label on the top right corner. Underneath the neatly handwritten print of his name, Credence could barely make out where it had come from – but he could at least see that the package appeared to be from a funeral home. 

His curiosity got the better of him and Credence ripped open the wrapping paper with his bare hands -- any inevitable lectures from his paranoid boyfriend forgotten in light of his intrigue.  

Underneath the wrapping there was a simple unmarked, white cardboard box.  

In that box, there were two large and circular containers -- black and seemingly made of plastic. Credence picked one up to observe it a bit more closely.  

A white sticker with black text across it read:  _temporary urn._  

Finally, it dawned on Credence:  

Ma'. 

Ma' and Chastity. 

Credence had never been sure quite what the No Maj's believed happened to the Barebone clan who had once resided in the broken down church on Gale street.  

While Credence had understood that the incident with the obscurus had been largely erased from No Maj memory, there was undoubtedly still bodies to find in the church's ruins, despite whatever the No Majs did or did not remember – and the Barebones had been no strangers to the overall New York No Maj community.  

Credence knew someone would have had to have found them – but he also had figured that without a large amount of witnesses who could testify to a great black ball of magic wreaking havoc on their city, it was unlikely that they would ever figure out the true cause of death -- or would even believe the one or two poor souls who might actually remember.  

They would have probably put it down to some vague "died of natural causes" explanation.  

After all -- no one would have truly cared.  

Noticed? Yes, undoubtedly.  

However... whether anyone  _car_ _ed_ was another issue all together.  

Had it not been for Percival -- Credence knew -- he would be lumped together in that same category:  

That group of people that folks remembered... but simply wouldn't miss.  

Credence pried open the top of the urn – the one that had Mary Lou's name scribbled on a separate sticker which he now saw. 

He coughed gingerly from the small plume of ash that rose up to greet him -- as though his Ma's ghost was reaching out from beyond the grave to scold him for simply looking at his own mail.  

Eyeing the dark sand contained inside, Credence suddenly remembered something he had forgotten about Ma'... something wicked, which made his hairs stand on end even now.  

 

* * *

 

Ma' had always loved tea.  

Or at least – that would be the impression that anyone would have had -- given the amount of tea that she drank (plus the fact that she wasn't even British).  

"Ma'," Credence had asked one day, back in his youth, when she was in a pleasant mood and conversation had seem non consequential, "What is that you put in your tea? It doesn't look like normal sugar..." 

He had been eyeing the ceramic sugar bowl that she had always brought out during her tea preparations – although its contents never quite looked like sugar at all.  

It was always grey... or at least off-colored white. 

Plus, it's texture was much finer than any sugar Credence had ever seen.  

"Sweetener," Ma' had responded simply -- but he could already tell by the high pitch of her voice that she was lying.  

But, of course, Credence knew better than to disagree with Ma'... especially right to her face.  

So instead -- Credence had merely observed.  

He had always known that children who were unfortunate enough to have the witch's mark  _and_ cross Ma's path had this rather tragic tendency to mysteriously vanish.  

What Credence had never quite caught before their conversation – however – was how Ma's sugar bowl seemed to only fill up once the latest MISSING flyers started getting posted all over the city.  

It had taken a few walks by the incinerator in the church's basement to put two and two together – and Credence was already much older by the time he finally did.  

One day – towards the end of Mary Lou Barebone's wretched life – Credence asked her directly, already having met Percival and overall less afraid of the world than he was as a child:  

"Doesn't that taste bad, Ma'?" 

Ma' did not even hesitate – still scooping the last spoonful of "sweetener" into her waiting cup of tea.  

"Evil  _always_ tastes good, Credence."  

Ma' looked up at him, a smile curling the corners of her lips.  

She stirred the spoon a final time, whirring the brown liquid gently.  

Then she lifted the warm cup – muttering "Cheers..." before Ma' tipped it into her mouth, her eyes never leaving Credence's disgusted expression.  

 

* * *

 

Percival was settling into his favorite corner on the sofa -- and Credence fell into his default position beside him.  

It had been a long day at MACUSA, as usual... so as Credence also typically did, he had done everything he could to make sure that Percival did not have to lift a finger when he got home. 

This meant everything from doing the laundry, to making dinner, and for this particular evening... nice, hot cups of coffee for dessert.  

"This does taste quite wonderful, my boy," Percival beamed, taking another sip from his nearly empty mug, "What did you put in it? I think you know I enjoy my coffee black... but this definitely has some kind of a flavor I can't quite place..."  

"Sweetener," Credence shrugged, downing the sip that would finish off his own serving, "It's... just sweetener." 

Percival seemed to accept the answer and asked no more questions. The older man set aside his mug and turned his attention back to the newspaper he was reading.  

Warmed by both Percival's trust and the cheery fire that crackled beneath their living room hearth -- Credence could not help but smile as he curled into Percival's side even more so.  

He nuzzled his face into the crook of Percival's neck – taking in the husky scent and gripping his mug tightly. 

Ma' was right, Credence thought.  

Evil  _does_ taste quite good after all.   

**Author's Note:**

> ^___^
> 
> Come chat   
> https://carryonmyobscurialson.tumblr.com/


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